Irezumi

“In Irezumi, Masumura’s mysterious fable set in the Edo period, Ayako Wakao plays Otsuya, the daughter of a wealthy merchant, who is abducted and forced into prostitution. A deranged tattoo artist engraves a large, black spider with a human face onto her back. As a result, she is transformed into a murderer determined to punish the men who abused her. Irezumi is a star-studded adaptation of the novel by the renowned author Junichiro Tanizaki, with a screenplay written by Kaneto Shindo (The Naked Island, Onibaba) and filmed by the legendary cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa (Rashomon, Ugetsu) in enchanting, opulent Eastmancolor. Irezumi is Masumura’s most visually striking film.” (Joseph Fahim, Karlovy Vary IFF, July 2024)

“Irezumi serves as a reminder that Masumura and Wakao form one of the most prolific director–actress duos in film history. (…) Incredibly staged, particularly the night scenes, in which Wakao displays a strength of character and an embodiment of resistance rarely achieved in similar films. Masumura is aware that the rules of exploitation in his cinematic world and in filmmaking in general lie uncomfortably close to one another; this tension and the relationship between his camera and Wakao bring the film to life.” (Filipe Furtado, letterboxd.com)